"I Pay Dead People!"

Recently, we put a new roof on our house. This is a major expense, thousands of dollars! I also replaced my truck with a van a few weeks ago; another large expense. I'm cheap! I don't like to spend money! I wear socks until toes are showing! I don't buy anything unless it's on sale! I relate my frugality to living in a house with so many people. My Mom and Dad had to stretch a dollar as far as it could go; and they did a great job. Dad worked two jobs for many years; never complaining. My Mom always put great dinners on the table; but we did eat pasta at least three times a week (always delicious). We used to go to Crown shoe stores, where shoes were five dollars a pair (one pair per kid). My Dad never missed a payment on anything; he was a responsible man. "Try not to borrow, and, always pay your debts", were words that have lived with me to this day; Dad was a man of intelligence and integrity. He grew up during the "Great Depression" and understood the value of a dollar, and knew you should keep an eye on your money. One of the reasons I think my wife is so amazing is that she understands the value of a dollar, and watches what she spends. My wife never loses track of our finances; our books are always in order! We know where every penny goes!!

Our nation is in a financial crisis. Unemployment is still at nearly 10% across the nation. Business is in a borrowing crisis, as banks are reticent about giving out loans. Home buying isn't active, and foreclosures are at an all time high. Our Congress has passed trillions of dollars in stimulus spending! As a government, we have spent an awful lot of money on an awful lot of stuff. I know politicians on both sides of the aisle like to spend money; and, if left unchecked, they will spend us into oblivion. They like projects such as bridges, roads, public works, stadiums, solar collection farms and countless other "earmark" and "pork" expenditures; it buys votes!

A few days ago, some interesting facts were uncovered that I find quite disturbing, yet not too surprising. It seems that 18 million dollars of our stimulus money went to dead people!! Yes, my fellow Americans, 72,000 dead people and prisoners have received stimulus checks! I understand mistakes can be made by anyone, and some budget errors are to be expected when working with so much money. One mistake that should never be made is who is dead and who is alive! I think this is a pretty easy distinction to make; I can usually tell the difference between a dead guy and a live guy! Who is keeping our books in Washington? Who is watching our money? We have people out of work and businesses that can't get funds to promote growth and our government is sending money to the dead? Cook County is alive and well in Washington D.C.!!

We are in debt that is practically beyond belief, our Gross Domestic Product is at an all time low and relief is somewhere beyond the horizon. Irresponsibility with the funds of the American people is unforgiveable at this juncture. We have a government in Washington that wants oversight in every aspect of our lives; yet, they don't even have proper oversight of the funds they have been entrusted with. Perhaps we need some "new eyes" to protect America's money; obviously, the Obama Administration isn't doing a very good job! He said, "YES WE CAN!" Well, Mr. President, I don't think you can; unless you're talking about bankrupting America!